Things That Go Bump In The Night
by Raidersrule76
Summary: Movie night at Titan's Tower turns into a struggle for survival, as the Titans face an assassin that sets it's sights on the newest member of the team. Sequel to Carson, second in a five part series.
1. I

RR76: I'm baaaaaaaack! By popular demand (not really) I have written the sequel to Carson, by... ME. So if you haven't read it yet, read it and come back and THEN read this. Or not, your call.

Since Carson took place during the time leading up to Terra's return, this one will take place in the months (weeks, days, hours, seconds) leading up to her betraying the Titans. So yeah.

**Review Responses (from the last chapter of Carson)**

**Queenie: Hahahaha, just wait and see. I've already told you my views on homosexuality... or not. If I haven't, tell me.**

**The Wild Ambition: You wait no longer.**

**im in a kill people mood: Okay...I'll remember not to tell you to calm down in the future.**

**Fourthelement: It wasn't graphic, or anything. And, um... actually, Queenie was the first reviewer. But you still get a llama!**

**SaintH: Shooting OCs can be fun. And then there's The OC, which is a stupid show. Then there's OC as in Orange County, which is good. **

**So there, enjoy the sequel.**

**Don't own, don't sue, don't flame. Or I'll sick the army of Red Monkey Men on you (Don't ask).**

**Oh, and this first scene is inspired in part from my favorite story I've ever read, Remnants. That story kicks ASS. In the best sense.**

* * *

Terra strolled into the living room of the tower. The other Titans stood in front of her looking serious. "Something happen?" asked Terra. 

"You can drop the act now Terra," said Robin, stepping forward and extending his staff. "We know."

Beads of sweat began to form on Terra's face. "Know... what?" she asked nervously. "I don't know what you're-"

"I said DROP THE ACT BITCH!" roared Robin, and swung the metal staff into Terra's face, knocking her to the ground. She stared up at him in horror.

"We know you're working for Slade," said Raven. "Giving him our secrets on a silver platter. You disgusting whore..."

"He's a criminal Terra. A madman," said Cyborg, arming his sonic cannon.

"We were your friends Terra. We offered you everything you ever wanted; friends, a home, and you threw it away." growled Starfire.

Terra scrambled to her feet, only to be hit by a blast from Cyborg. "It's over Terra," said Beast Boy angrily. "You die and burn in hell."

The Titans advanced on her slowly "No, you can't... you won't!" Terra whimpered. "You're my friends." She became aware of someone behind her and she turned to see Slade standing, towering over her. He raised his hand and a Colt .45 revolver appeared.

"You don't have any friends," he said coldly, and fired.

* * *

"Um, Terra? You're drooling on my shouldar," a voice said. Terra snapped awake and looked around as the memory came flooding back. Movie night, she had fallen asleep and used Beast Boy as a pillow.The aforementioned changeling looked at Terra, concerned. "Bad dream?" he asked. In response, Terra flung her amrs around him and buried her face in his chest. They were like that for exactly five seconds, which is when the VCR glowed black and ejected the tape, which slammed against the wall and shattered. "Movie's over," Raven said curtly. "Time for bed." She got up and walked through the door to the elevator, leaving Cyborg moaning about the bill from Blockbuster. The other Titans eventually followed suit and went to their respective rooms (to moan about the bill. Ha, kidding. To sleep)

* * *

The door slid shut behind Terra and she leaned against it, her heart still pounding. The others still had no idea she was working for Slade. And of course, she didn't have a hole in her forehead. All for the best. Terra changed into her pajamas, got into bed and turned off the light. 

A moment later her eyes flew open as she suddenly became aware of a presence in her room, soft footsteps echoing in the silence. She heared the sound of metal scraping against metal-- like a sword being unsheathed. A glimmer of light caught her eye as the steel blade came into view, raised just above the back of her neck. Terra rolled to her side as the blade came down, stabbing through the matress. Her attacker pulled the blade back out and swung, aiming for her neck. Terra ducked and hit the alarm, bathing the room in red light, illuminating her attacker. He wore a black cloak, the hood cast over his face. An orange flame engulfed his body and he disappeared without a trace.

The door to her room fell and the Titans poured in, ready to fight. Robin lowered his staff when he saw only Terra standing in the dark. "What happened?" he asked.

"Something-- someone, attacked me," Terra stammered.

"Are you hurt?" asked Beast Boy. Terra shook her head.

"Can you tell us what he looked like?" asked Robin.

"I didn't get a good look at him, but he did this thing where he disappeared," Terra replied. "Think it could be Mumbo?"

"Mumbo wouldn't use a sword..." Robin murmured, examining the hole in Terra's matress. He turned to the others. "Get dressed and meet downstairs in five minutes." He looked at Terra. "You sure you're okay?" She nodded and the Titans left.

Terra walked to her dresser and opened a drawer to see a note adressed to her. She lowered it slowly, her hands shaking. It read:

_Terra:_

_If you're reading this, then you're still alive as I anticipated. But don't worry; I'll correct that problem soon enough._

_Darkside_


	2. II

RR76: I apoligize in advance for this chapter.

**Responses:**

**Queenie: SHHHHH! You'll give away the plot! Foreshadowment should have been caught... hope it was.**

**im in a kill people mood: Swords are cool, aren't they?**

**Fourthelement: Enjoy the llama. That was partly born out of my Terra hatingness, but I had to have pain come unto her.**

**SaintH: Plot's thick as...um...really really thick...stuff...yeah. Like blood.  
**

**The Wild Ambition: I can't think of anything to say either! AAAAAAAAHHHHH! I'm INSANE! Wait, I already knew that!**

**Don't own, don't sue, don't flame. Or I'll unleash Zucco the Moo Cow upon you!**

* * *

Terra sat on her couch and turned on her laptop. She went on the internet (not mine) to Yahoo (also not mine) to her email account. She looked in her adress book for the adress "ds the T" and noticed the smiley face indicating that he was on. She went on IM and opened a session with him. It went something like this... 

**ds the T: Good evening. **

**rockyhorror: somethings after me.**

**ds the T: I see...**

Terra waited a moment, expecting Slade (if you haven't figured it out already...) to say something. When he didn't she typed in something else.

**rockyhorror: what do u want me 2 do?**

**ds the T: Capitalize on it.**

**(ds the T has signed out)**

Terra shut down her laptop and leaned back against the couch. Capitalize on it?

What the hell did that mean?

* * *

"...all we know is that someone is after Terra, possibly all of us. Beyond that, no details," Robin was telling the team (which had assembled in the living room, to the not so bright). 

"And speaking of the Blonde wonder," Raven said dryly, "Where is she?"

"She has a name, Raven," Beast Boy muttered.

"Right, sorry. Which do you prefer 'Drool Monkey' or 'Vapid Whore?"

"Shut up! WHY DO YOU HATE HER?"

"Both of you sit down; this is not the time or the place for this discussion!" Robin roared. The two quarrling Titans quieted and sat down.

"Honestly guys, there's an assassin in the Tower trying to impale us, and you two can't stop arguing for five minutes. Can't you just put aside your jealousy for five seconds Raven?"

"I am NOT jealous!" Raven snapped, blushing. The others chuckled but Robin silenced them with a glare. "Work with me guys. We've dealt with infiltrations before, this is no differant--" a bullet struck the window behind him, shattering it into a million tiny fragments.

"Get down!" Cyborg shouted, diving behind the couch with the others. More windows shattered around them, the gunshots coming from the doorway. A figure stood there, draped in a black cloak, arm outstretched, a gun in his hand (sorry im in a kill people mood). A black mask covered his face.

"Cyborg, give me some cover fire," Robin hissed. Cyborg nodded and peeked over the couch at the intruder. He brought up his sonic cannon and fired a shot, hitting the intruder in the chest, knocking him back. Robin jumped out from behind his cover and drew his staff.

Robin entered the hallway cautiously, weapon thrust out ahead of him. He flicked on a light and looked down to see a gun discarded on the floor. _That's... interesting, _he thought. _What kind of assassin just leaves behind his weapon at the scene of the crime? _As if to answer his question, something jumped out at him from a side door, knocking him to the ground. He drew a knife and brought it down, aiming for Robin's heart. Robin blocked the blow and kicked his attacker off of him. The two stared at each other before the attacker kicked Robin back and took off running down the hall, dropping the knife as he went.

Robin got to his feet and walked to the discarded knife, picking it up. The other Titans came running up behind him.

Starfire rushed to Robin's side. "Are you injured?" she asked. Robin shook his head.

"You guys recognize this?" he asked, presenting the knife. The blade was seperated into two parts, a longer blade in front of a shorter blade. It was dark shade of purple with the forward blade curved wickedly. "It was in the evidence room. Belonged to an old aquaintence of ours."

Terra chose that moment to come running in. "I heared fighting, is everyone okay?"

"Sorry Terra, you're just the slightest bit TOO LATE. WHERE WERE YOU?" Raven snarled.

"Some guy came in and got a little trigger happy," said Beast Boy, giving Raven a look.

"Okay team, this assassin guy is definately armed and dangerous, ("you'd just noticed?" muttered Raven) meaning that none of us is safe alone. I suggest we divide into twos and search this tower top to bottom. Starfire, you're with me, we'll take the upper floors and the roof. Raven, Terra, you two take middle floors, Beast Boy and Cyborg, the lower ones, including the basement. Any questions?" Raven raised her hand. "Do I really have to be paired with forehead gal?" (A/N: She does have a big forehead...in my opinion.)

As the Titans went about their tasks, a figure stared after them from the living room. He smirked at the retreating figure of Terra. "Soon, girl. No matter how hard you try, you cannot outrun your fate. For Hell itself has come to claim you." A flame surrounded him and he disappeared in the shadow of the night.

* * *

RR76: That thing about the apology? I take it back, this is probably the best chapter I've written in my 10 months on this site, counting Past Tense and Code Lyoko Insanity (the series). Review please. 


	3. III

RR76: Sorry 'bout the long period of waiting. Here's my update.

**Responses:**

**Queenie: Okay... hey, you're allowed to say stuff, but don't give away anything that'll happen to Terra. **

**The Desperado: Depends. Who do you think it is?**

**SaintH: Serious fic? Sounds... interesting. I'll be on the lookout.**

**EMBER91: Actually, she does kinda have a big forehead. No, I was not referring to Peaches.**

**rav90: This may or may not be Carson. You'll have to find out. No promises with the gore.**

**fourthelement: Really? Well, that's what people'll remember me by, huh? Vapid whore...hmm, I liked that one too. **

**im in a kill people mood: Belonged to Carson. He took it off of Johnny Rancid after unleashing his hellish fury on him. Cool, samurai training. No offense taken-- I thought it was better than the other chapters too.**

**The Wild Ambition: Sweater? Explainy.**

**Don't own, don't sue, don't flame. Or I'll sic my english and science teachers upon you!**

* * *

"Are you going to stop being suspicious of me any time soon?" asked Terra irritably. Ever since Darkside's last apperance, Raven had been keeping a close eye on her as they searched the tower, not fully trusting the girl. True, Terra had proven herself when she saved Titan's Tower from destruction, and many times since then. Still, something was...off. Raven was a good judge of charecter, being the first to distrust Carson--hellish power notwithstanding--and something about Terra made her suspicious. 

"As soon as you do something to make me want to, sure," the half demon said. _Stupid girl,_ she thought. _Thinking she's so high and mighty just 'cause she saved the Tower, and smashed Mumbo, and killed a giant scorpian, and has a green boyfriend... I've done more for this city than she has, but do I get smothered in affection? Nooooo..._

_**Are you jealous**? _Raven's subconcious asked.

_What? No! That's absurd! _Raven mentally yelled.

_**Do I have to remind you of what you just thought?  
**_

_Do I have to remind you that you have...a... a... ... stupid...face?_

_**Oooh, stupid face, you wound me with your words. We have the same face, Ravie.**_

_Don't call me that._

_**You realize you're talking to yourself, don't you?  
**  
...shut up._

"Hello? Raven? Still in there?" a voice said, pulling Raven out of her mental battle with herself.

"Huh? Yeah, hold the onions," said Raven.

"I said, you wanted to search the evidence room?" the geomancer said, rolling her eyes.

"...Whatever,"

"Look Raven--," Terra began, but an explosion cut her off in midsentance. The left wall toppled outward, almost crushing Raven with the debris. Terra caught the rubble with her powers and gently set them down. She extended her hand to Raven, but she slapped it away and stood on her own. "You're welcome," Terra muttered.

The two stepped into the evidence room and started to look around. Everything seemed to be in place... except a few items that had mysteriously disappeared.

"We're short one black cloak, ninja arsenal, and...mask?" Raven said, looking at the exhibit for "Makisaki," a ninja wannabe that had been the first villian the Titans toppled.

"Don't forget the knife," Terra chimed in. Raven stepped up next to where Terra was standing-- at the exhibit for Carson Elam. The cutlass was still there, glinting slightly in the moonlight. Also missing were five rounds of ammunition.

"So, obviously, this assassin is too cheap to get his own weapons, so he has to borrow the weapons of a dead merc," Terra examined.

Raven rolled her eyes. "Truly amazing, your powers of deduction,"

* * *

"Robin, we have searched this corridor seven times, and still we have not found any life threataning devices. Perhaps the danger has passed?" Starfire asked Robin, who was tearing apart a hallway for explosives, smoke bombs, etc. 

"Someone is after us Star. You've fought mercenaries before; they don't just give up. This 'Darkside', whoever he is, isn't going to give up until we're all--" Robin was cut off in midsentance as a shuriken ninja star lodged itself in the wall next to him. The two turned quickly to see a woman, about 19 or 20 years old, standing, gripping a Japanese ninja sword. "I vill be your doom!" she shouted with a Romanian accent, and charged Robin and Starfire. She swung the sword in a vertical ark, aiming for Robin's torso. Robin pulled a birdarang and blocked the attack, hitting the woman in the stomach with his free hand. She stumbled backward with a grunt, and stared at Robin with fury. With a cry, she came at him again, only to be hit by a starbolt from the lithe Tameranian princess.

The woman fell to the ground, groaning. Robin held the birdarang to her throat and demanded "Who are you?"

The woman laughed bitterly. "You vould murder an unarmed and defensless woman? You disgust me."

Starfire stepped forward, her eyes blazing with green light. Starbolts appeared in her hands and when she spoke it was with a fire that Robin had never heard from her--one that frightened him.

"You are wrong," she said slowly. "He would not hurt you, an Earth woman. For whatever reason, it is against the code of conduct here. I, on the other hand, have no such reservations. Talk. Now!" Her hand was an inch from the womans face, and the heat from the starbolt began to make her sweat.

"Janna," she babbled (that's pronounced "YAH-nah"). "My name is Janna,"

"Who sent you?" Starfire demanded. The woman hesitated. Frustrated, Starfire punched her. "ANSWER ME! WHO SENT YOU?"

Janna began to sob. "Please, no more. I know nothing of my employer's identity, he keeps it a secret even from those closest to him. He told me only that I was to assist Darkside in any way I could."

The fury in Starfire's eyes began to fade, along with the starbolts. She began to tremble, as she realized what she had done, what she was about to do. Robin knelt next to Janna. "Listen. I could call the police right now and have you arrested for attempted murder. Now, obviously, you aren't the same person who attacked Terra earlier, or tried to gut me with the knife. But he is still out there, and we may need all the help we can get against him." Robin held out his hand. "If you help us, then I'll see to it that you never set foot in a prison."

Slowly, almost reluctantly, Janna took Robin's hand and he pulled her to her feet. "I...vill help you," Janna said. "There is something you should know. About Darksi--" A bullet struck the back of her skull, shattering her head from the force. Her lifeless body fell to the ground and Robin and Starfire saw Darkside standing, a smoking gun in his hand. Flames enveloped him and he disappeared.

* * *

"I don't think there's anything else missing," Terra said. "Let's get out of here and report to Robin," The two Titans left the room. As the door closed behind them, sealing the room in darkness, a spark flashed in the corner. The spark turned into a flame, casting the room in orange light. From this flame appeared a black cloaked warrior. "Janna...fool," Darkside said. "Your loss means nothing. The girl will die, and I will be her executioner--with or without your-" 

The door creaked open. "Is someone in here?" asked Terra, poking her head in.

Darkside froze. "Oh balls, I thought you were gone."

RR76: Please review. Or...yeah. Sumpin'.

"You might be a redneck, if you walk around without a shirt on all the time and so does your husband!"-Jeff Foxworthy


	4. IV

RR76: I leave that crappy middle school in 3 weeks! I'm a-countin' the days!

**Responses:**

**The Wild Ambition: Now I get it. But since Terra is an evil, heartless, backstabbing anerexic bitch stick from hell...**

**im in a kill people mood: On closer inspection... it does! On accident though--which is weird 'cause Buffy is one of my biggest inspirations. If they made Teen Titans a bitty bit darker and more grown up and put it on adult swim, it'd be just like Buffy, since they steal from it all the time. Carson is loosely based on Angelus, I don't know if I mentioned...**

**SaintH: That'll come into play alot later... but Janna was mainly there to show up, thicken the plot and get shot. Cool.**

**fourthelement: You can forgive her for being absentminded (if you want). She DOES have an assassin after her.**

**EMBER91: Word shall be spread.**

**For the record, EMBER91 is having computor problems and cannot update. Thank you.**

**Don't own, don't sue, don't flame. Or... or... or... or... hmmmm... arg, I ran out of threats. Well, as soon as I think of something, I'll get you with it!**

* * *

For a moment, the three stared silently across the room at each other. Time seemed to stand still as they stared each other down in classic tedious stare-down style. The moment was shattered as Darkside drew his gun and fired a single shot at Terra. A screen of energy appeared and halted the bullet in it's tracks. Darkside cursed and holstered the revolver, charging the two Titans, catching them off guard. 

Raven stepped in front of Terra and Darkside skidded to a halt. Raven noticed, for the first time, that he was wearing a hood that almost completely covered his features, much like her own. The only part of his face that was visible was his chin.

"Where's the mask?" she asked tauntingly, throwing a punch wildly.

Darkside knocked the blow away. "What mask?" he asked, seemingly genuinely confused, and backhanded Raven, sending her across the room, smashing into several exhibits.

The witch's eyes glowed ominously as she chanted her mantra. "Azerath Metrion ZINTH--

_

* * *

Pain shot through him as the electricity was turned to 900 gigawatts. His mouth opened to scream, but the sound was drowned out by the electric generator sending sheer power through his body. Around him the scientists looked down at their clipboards, nodding and writing things down furiously. One stepped up to the generator and turned a knob, sending more electricity surging through him. How could they? How could they? This was HIS body, and he was a sentient being, was he not? If only he could make them pay, make them feel what he felt every day since his only friend abandoned him. And just like that, as if someone had thrown a switch, the pain was gone. The generator still ran, the electricity still surged, but there was no pain. Only a rush of euphoria, of raw strength. A voice sounded in his mind, urging him, telling him to take that power, and use it against his tormenters. His bonds snapped, the glass case shattered, and the scientists ran screaming for cover. The guard cocked his weapon and fired, only to have his throat torn out in an instant of--_

* * *

Darkside's foot connected with Raven's jaw and she fell to the ground, unconcious. Underneth the hood, Darkside smirked. His head turned slowly to face Terra. 

"Geomancer," he said slowly. "I am Darkside. I am your judge, jury, and executioner. My client will pay handsomly for your head on a platter." He stepped forward, drawing the gun again and aiming at Terra.

Terra sent a piece of rubble at Darkside, but he merely punched it and it shattered. "Come come, Terra," he mocked. "You know it will take more than that to stop me..."

"You mean like this?" Terra snarled. The rubble rose into the air and began to come together into a bouldar. When it was finished, Terra sent it straight at Darkside's head, hitting him on his skull. He let out a grunt of pain and staggered backward, losing his balance long enough for Terra to shatter the bouldar and send the individual pieces at him. One hit his hand, sending the gun skidding across the room.

Suddenly, Darkside let out a howl of primal fury (tm). A wall of fire surrounded him and expanded, incinerating the rocks. He ran to his fallen gun and picked it up, aimed at Terra, and pulled the trigger. Nothing happened. "Son of a bitch, this happens every time!" he groaned. More rubble flew at him, but the flames surrounded him once again and he disappeared. Terra took one look at the fallen Raven, then at the spot where Darkside had teleported away, and took off running down the hall.

* * *

A knock sounded on the door on the ground floor as Beast Boy and Cyborg searched the second floor for any trace of their assassin. Beast Boy's ears were, naturally, keen to sound, being so big and all, Cyborg's ears... not so much. 

"Hey Cy, mind getting the door?" asked Beast Boy.

"The door? As in the front door to the Tower?" Cyborg replied, scratching his half-bald head.

"You know any other doors that just got knocked on?" said Beast Boy, looking at his friend. Cyborg just tilted his head to the side in a "You hearing things again?" kind of way. Beast Boy sighed. "Fine, I'll get it..." he grumbled.

At the door were two men in business suits, one holding an umbrella (since it's raining outside). "Can I help you?" asked she shapeshifter nervously.

"Agents Wilson and Schroeder, FBI. We'd like to talk to you for a moment, if we may," one said, producing a badge. "May we come in?"

Beast Boy stared. "Guys, it's kind of our job to fight crime in this city, so if you'll just mosey along back to Washington, or Chicago, or one of those other superheroless cities--"

"This is serious. We understand that you have recently had contact with the mercenary, Carson Elam."

Beast Boy stared. "Well, yeah, but he's dead now. He blew up in a helicopter. You shoulda seen it, it was--"

"We have reason to believe he's still alive," Schroeder said curtly.

"Dude, would you please stop interrupting-- did you say alive?" Beast Boy asked increduously.

Wilson nodded. "Alive and well. We've been tracking him since his last appearence, in Gotham City on February 2nd, 2004, and it is imperitive that you let us in so we can... interview... your friends about your encounter with him."

Beast Boy eyed the two shifty agents suspiciously. "You're not telling me everything..." he said slowly.

Wilson produced a gun and held it to the teen's face. "Young man, we're the FBI. We don't have to tell you anything we don't want to. Now, about us coming in..." His face turned to horror and a second later to a congealed mess of sinew and teeth. Schroeder drew his own gun but a bullet struck him in the chest and he fell dead. Beast Boy turned around to come face to face with a dark figure, clad in a cloak and mask. It leaped into the air and landed in front of Beast Boy, striking him in the chest with a kick. Beast Boy stumbled backward, but quickly morphed into a bear and charged, swiping at the figure madly, backing it into a corner. The figure kept dodging the swipes of Beast Boy's massive paws, until it's luck ran out, and a swipe hit it in the face, knocking the mask off. Before Beast Boy could get a good look at him/her/it, the assassin covered his/her/it's face with his/her/it's arms and a second later something massive hit him in the stomach. Beast Boy fell backward, moaning in pain. The sound of Cyborg's sonic cannon met his ears next and a second later his massive footsteps as he ran to Beast Boy's side.

"You okay bro?" he asked, helping Beast Boy to his feet. The boy nodded, and a second later, Cyborg's arm-phone rang. A moment later, Robin's face appeared on his arm. Cyborg, do you read me?"

"Loud and clear. What's up?"

"There's been some new developments, meet up back in the living room," Robin said, slightly distraught.

"Did you reach Terra and Raven?" Beast Boy asked, wincing from the pain in his gut.

"Raven yes, Terra no. They got seperated after an attack by our assassin."

Cyborg and Beast Boy looked at each other. "How could they have just been attacked? WE were just attacked!" said Cyborg, confused.

Robin shook his head. "We'll figure it out when we meet up, now hurry."

* * *

"...so we now know the following things about our assassin: His name's Darkside, he likes fire, he works with underpaid Romanian women, and he's especially pissed at Terra." Raven said, upon finishing her description of the short but brutal battle with Darkside and of Robin and Starfire's encounter with Janna. She had preferred to keep the details of her little vision to herself. 

At that moment, Terra came in. "Three, two, one..." Raven muttered.

"Terra! Are you okay? What happened, what's with the bruise?" Beast Boy asked worridly.

Terra's eyes darted around the room. "Darkside," she said quickly. "During the fight. He hit me. Hard. On the cheek."

Raven's eyes narrowed. "I don't remember Darkside hitting you on the cheek at all--"

"Well you were asleep for half the fight!" Terra yelled. Everyone was silent.

Robin broke the uncomforable silence. "Okay team, there may be more than one man after us. Double your watches, and don't turn your back on anything. Don't worry guys-- this guyis going down, dead or alive."

"I vote dead," a familiar voice said. All eyes turned toward the entrance to the hallway, where eleven eyes and one optical implant, widend and six mouths gasped. There, leaning in the doorway, was none other than Carson Elam.

* * *

RR76: Plot twisty. I still haven't thought of a threat though... but if I may, I'd like to say that my science teacher is a freaking pervert! Sorry--sex ed, never pretty. Review please. 


	5. V

RR76: I have something to say before you read. And that is this:  
Applesauce. It lies in all of us. Sleeping...waiting... And though unwanted... unbidden... it will stir... open its jaws, and howl. It speaks to us... guides us... Applesauce rules us all. And we obey. What other choice do we have? Applesauce is the source of our finest moments. The joy of love... the clarity of hatred... and the ecstasy of grief. It hurts sometimes more than we can bear. If we could live without applesauce, maybe we'd know some kind of peace. But we would be hollow. Empty rooms, shuttered and dank... Without applesauce, we'd be truly dead.

...wait. I think I got it wrong...

"Passion. It lies in all of us. Sleeping...waiting... And though unwanted... unbidden... it will stir... open its jaws, and howl. It speaks to us... guides us... Passion rules us all. And we obey. What other choice do we have? Passion is the source of our finest moments. The joy of love... the clarity of hatred... and the ecstasy of grief. It hurts sometimes more than we can bear. If we could live without passion, maybe we'd know some kind of peace. But we would be hollow. Empty rooms, shuttered and dank... Without passion, we'd be truly dead."-Angelus

There we go. That was it.

**Responses:**

**Queenie: Calm. Calm. Breathe. Breathe some more. Keep breathing...still breathing? Okay, now stop. Now BREATHE! Did you stop being freaked out about the vampire dream yet?**

**Rory: Lotsa people seem to like him. Someone wanted to marry him, actually...ah, yes. The science teacher. Co-author of the Book of Evility.**

**EMBER91: Top ranked offense of 2005, here we come baby! Sorry, Raider thing. Wait and see what happens to Terra...wait and see...are you still waiting? Good.**

**im in a kill people mood: Didn't mean to make him sound like anyone but Carson, but hey.**

**SaintH: They were meant to be bastards. Carson be back, and still ass kicking.**

**The Wild Ambition: Yes, lets not.**

**Don't own, don't sue, don't flame. Lest pain of toads and snakes and turkey sandwitches with mayo be brought upon you!**

* * *

"Surprised to see me? I thought you would be," Carson said, folding his arms and leaning against the frame of the door. He had grown a bit and his voice was a bit deeper, but he still retained the piercing glare. At his side hung his trademark revolver and a katana, to replace his cutlass lost in his battle with the Titans. His wardrobe had changed a bit--his shirt was black, as were his shoes and pants, and a black cape hung around his shoulders, making him seem larger. He still wore the jacket he'd taken off of Johnny Rancid, but he'd cut off the sleeves to make it into a vest. His hair was cut shorter and a scar ran down his left cheek. 

Robin took Carson's remark as a challenge and drew his staff, getting into a combat stance. Carson chuckled. "Robin, Robin...if I wanted to fight, you could tell by being dead already."

"How are you alive?" Beast Boy demanded. "We saw you die."

"You saw nothing," Carson snapped. "I escaped from the helicopter just as it blew."

"Forgive me if I seem skeptical," Raven said, stepping forward, "But it would be kind of hard to escape from an exploding helicopter."

"What can I say," Carson said with a smirk. "I'm hard to kill."

"Everyone, be quiet," Robin said to his teammates. To Carson, he said "Why are you here?"

"The same reason you're here. To fight for truth and justice, and love, and puppies, and Christmas, and whatever the hell else you do," the merc said, waving a hand dismissivly. "I came to help with your problem with Darkside."

Robin lowered his staff. "You know Darkside?" he asked suspiciously.

"We go back. Way back. Now, if you'll just listen to my explaination, I can get back to work saving your worthless lives and collect my fee. A guy's gotta eat, you know." said Carson, stepping out from the doorway.

"See, my employer, a man named Tri--Trionne, has taken a notice in the activities of Darkside. He sees him as a threat to him and his affairs, and these happen to involve the Teen Titans. You. Darkside was sent to assassinate not all of you, but just one. Terra."

"If it's just Terra he's after, why is he trying to kill all of us whenever he gets a chance?" Beast Boy asked.

"I didn't ask. Now, if we can just get on with this..." Carson pressed anxiously.

"In a moment," Robin said. "Star, Beast Boy, Terra, why don't the three of you speak to our guest...somewhere else."

The door slid shut behind the four teens, and Robin let out a sigh. "Well, what do you guys think?"

"He's hiding something," Raven said.

"Is that from you being a psychic?" asked Cyborg.

"It's from my woman's intuition. Last time we worked with Carson, we all nearly died. He's a threat to all of us." Raven replied, leaning against the wall.

"What if he is telling the truth? This Darkside guy is pretty tough; we could use all the help we can get," Cyborg pointed out.

Robin sat there, considering his options. Trust Carson, and he might end up with one or more of his friends dead. Don't trust him, and he might still end up with Terra dead.

He sighed again. Being the leader sucked.

* * *

"You still let Robin call the shots for you? Even after all the mistakes he's made? Red X, working with Slade, me?" Carson asked, smiling a bit at that last one. The smile faded a bit when he saw Starfire staring at him. "What? Something wrong?" he asked apathetically. 

"I will tell you now Carson. This is the only warning you get. If you dare to harm any of my friends, I will kill you myself," Starfire growled, her voice thick with hatred.

After a moment, Carson chuckled. "Yeah...we all know how well that worked out last time, don't we? I esceped unharmed, and you had a hole in your side."

Starfire's fingers balled into a fist and she started to say something else when Robin walked through, Raven and Cyborg in tow. "Might wanna consider putting a leash on her Robin, that breed's been prone to unprovoked violence," Carson said tauntingly. He grinned and then said so only Robin could hear him "Or have the two of you not gotten to leashes yet?"

Robin shoved him back and Carson laughed. "Shut up dirtbag, and listen. This is against my better judgement...but I've decided to take you up on your offer."

Carson folded his arms. "Like you have a choice..." he muttered.

"Okay guys, same teams as before. Carson, you're with me and Star," Robin said.

"Actually, I'd rather be with Terra. Not to brag, but I happen to be the best fighter here. In an ambush, I'd be her best chance for her survival. It'd be a pity to die at the hands of inept bodyguarding," Carson interjected.

"Are you implying that I'm inept?" Raven asked bitterly.

"Do I need to spell it out for you?" Carson said with a smirk.

"Guys, just...shut up and move out. Carson, you're with Terra, Raven's with us. Now go." Robin said, exasperated (how many times can I use that word and get away with it...?)

* * *

"So...is there another reason you wanted to go with me?" Terra asked Carson with a smile. 

Carson scoffed. "Don't flatter yourself. I came with you to protect you from certain doom. No other reason."

"Not even to pay back a debt you owe?" Terra said. Carson stopped walking and looked at Terra, remembering...oh look, a never tedious flashback sequence. Sigh...buckle up.

_The rock encasement around Carson receded into the ground and he fell agains the hard earth. Terra walked up to his body nonchalontly and felt his neck for a pulse._

_"He's...alive?" Terra said, looking at Slade with a look of confusion._

_"I expected this," Slade purred. "Carson is notoriously difficult to kill. An entire army couldn't stop him."_

_Terra stood up. "What do you want me to do with him?" she asked._

_Slade turned and walked down the tunnel. "Dispose of him properly."_

_

* * *

Carson coughed, having choked on another gulp of water. He blinked several times to clear his vision. When he looked up, he saw Terra standing on a cliff overlooking the city, staring out at the skyline._

_Carson tried to stand but found that his legs had lost all feeling. "What happened?" he asked Terra. "Why am I alve?"_

_"Because you're hard to kill?" Terra said, looking at him. "I don't know, I don't care. All I know is that you're on the lam. If Slade finds out I didn't obey him, I'll die and he'll get a new apprentice."_

_"Terra..."_

_"You should leave town. Change your name. You got any relatives you can stay with? Friends, family, random billionairs?" Terra asked, trying and failing to sound tough._

_"Terra...I don't..."_

_"Don't say anything. As far as anyone knows, you're dead. Live the illusion." And without another word, Terra lifted off on a rock and floated back into the city._

"Yeah...I suppose I do owe you. Big time," Carson said to the geomancer. "'Course, you could say I already payed you back, after not ratting you out to your friends that you're gonna betray them."

Terra leaned against the wall and sighed. "It's not that I want to, I don't--"

"Liar."

"...Okay, maybe a little, but not all of them. Just Raven. And maybe Robin."

Carson looked at her.

"...and maybe Cyborg but that's it. ...fine. And Starfire."

"Not Beast Boy?" Carson pressed.

"I can't. I...you know..."

"I figured, yeah. The way he reacted when I mentioned your name." Carson smiled fondly at the memory. "I still kicked his ass though."

"Do you know what it feels like?" Terra asked, looking at Carson. "To have someone you love betray you?"

For a moment, Carsons' confident expression disappeared, a look of sorrow replaicing it. It was only for a moment though, and his normal expression returend. "Yeah. I do."

Terra turned away and sighed again. "Beast Boy. When we first met I made him swear never to tell Robin that I couldn't control my powers. He did anyway. I went to Slade looking for a way to get him back, and now I have to..." She buried her face in her hands. "It's just so much pressure and confliction, and I just wish it could all be over!"

Something cold and metallic was pressed against the back of her head. "I can fix that," Carson said coldly.

"What are you..."

"I wasn't exactly telling the truth when I said I was after Darkside. I _am _Darkside. That tip you gave me, change my name? Worked like a bloody charm. And I certainly wasn't sent here to kill myself. Just to kill Slade's agent in the Titans."

Sweat trickled down her neck as Carson spoke his next words, cocking the hammer of the revolver. "You wouldn't happen to know who that is, would you?"

RR76: More plot twists. Review now please. Or all will be cheese! Hey, that rhymes!


	6. VI

RR76: Remember what I said about applcesauce. It'll come in handy when the time comes...or not.

**Responses:**

**Queenie: Ahhh, so it's reacurring, is it? Please tell me, I'm dying to know. Maybe I can interperate it for you? Wow, that's outdated. I'll remember what you said about detail. **

**SaintH: She had doubts about what Slade told her to do. She hasn't become COMPLETELY evil yet. Just wait.**

**The Wild Ambition: What's a Deathpool?**

**im in a kill people mood: Terra gets thrashed a couple times, but wait and see what happens to her in the end. No, Carson isn't British. I just like British slang. Like bloody and pillock. And bollacks. I don't know why, but that's funny.**

**Don't own, don't sue, don't flame. Or, y'know...die. Or sumpin'.**

* * *

Terra spun around and kicked the gun out of Carson's hand, and brought her other leg up aiming for his chin, but Carson grabbed her foot and slammed her into the wall. "You pulled a nice trick with the cloak, but it was doomed to faliure. You couldn't use your own powers to help yourself, and you don't seem to be a very good shot." He picked up the revolver and aimed at Terra. "I on the other hand..." 

He fired a shot at Terra's head, but the nimble girl rolled out of the way and sent a chunk of the wall at him. Carson stepped out of the way and fired again. Terra yelped as pain shot through her arm. She looked and a small hole had appeared, blood soaking though her sleeve. She looked back at Carson, who was grinning. "Sorry Ter. This is where you get off," he chortled, and pulled the trigger.

A chunk of wall stopped the bullet and hurled itself at Carson, hitting him in the chest. Carson fell back with an "oof," and Terra took advantage of the oppertunity. She charged him, swinging with her good arm (in this case, her left). Carson dodged every swing and eventually just got sick of it, grabbed the arm with his right hand and punched Terra in the face in the left. Terra staggered back as blood trickled down from her nose. "You can't hit me, I'm a girl!" she yelled.

Carson cracked his neck. "Sometimes I wonder," he said, and drew his sword. He stepped forward, ducked under another kick from Terra and punched her in the stomach with his left hand...again. Terra fell to the ground and began to back up as Carson's sword edged closer to her face. He raised the sword, preparing for the fatal blow and said "This is it for you Terra. Nobody's coming to save you this time." Irony struck him in the back in the form of a sonic cannon, knocking him down.

Cyborg stood at the end of the hall, his cannon aimed at Carson's head. Raven phased through the floor behind him, coming between him and Terra, and Starfire flew down the hall to the wounded girl, helping her to her feet.

"That's enough Carson," Robin's voice sounded, as he stepped down the hallway with Beast Boy in tow.

"You don't get it, do you?" Carson yelled, waving his sword frantically. "Open your eyes Robin, Terra is a traitor! She was the one who attacked you all those times, not me!"

"We really have to stop trusting you," Raven growled, levitating herself forward. The other Titans closed in on him. Robin produced Carson's stolen knife from his utility belt and charged, swinging the blade wildly. Carson blocked every blow and kicked the boy wonder in the chest.

Raven gathered her powers and sent a blast at Carson. "Azerath Metrion Zin--"

_"-tell me to calm down! How could you? I gave you everything, my heart, my body and soul, and you repay me with--"_

The blast fizzled out just as Robin and Beast Boy attacked Carson together, backing him into one of the rooms. Raven collapsed, breathing heavily and Terra rushed to her side. "What's wrong, are you okay?" she asked.

Raven stared at the battle going on between the other four Titans and Carson. "I don't know anymore..." she said.

* * *

Carson blocked another swing from Robin and ducked under a swipe of a bear paw from Beast Boy. Starbolts from Starfire and blasts from Cyborg's sonic cannon aimed at his feet kept him backing up, constanlty on the defensive. The mercenary continued to be pushed back, unable to counterattack properly, and before he knew it his back was at the wall. Cyborg closed in on him and Starfire hovered over the three Titans as they converged. He was surrounded. 

Carson began to sweat as his gaze darted back and forth from each of the Titans, and finally realized where his best chance lay. "What now Robin?" he taunted. "Kill me, and you become me."

A look of disgust crossed Robin's face as he drew an explosive disk. He drew his arm back and threw it...into the wall, exposing the harbor, the first light of morning reflecting on the ocean. "Get out," Robin said. "If you ever come back, we'll kill you."

Carson's trademark confident smirk returned. "This isn't over yet, birdie. I'll be back for Terra." Beast Boy stepped forward but Cyborg held him back. Carson looked Robin in the eye. "Oh, and by the way..." Quick as lightning, Carson knocked the knife out of Robin's hand and caught it in midair. "This is mine."

Starfire gave a cry and hurled her starbolts at Carson. The aforementioned teenage assassin backflipped out of the hole in the wall. Flames surrounded him and he  
disappeared into the air.

* * *

Two weeks later...

* * *

Raven found Robin in his usual hangout: The gym, punching a punching bag with a badly drawn image of Slade's face attatched. "Robin, I need to talk to you. Got a minute?" she asked. 

Robin abandoned his excercise for a moment and wiped his face on a towel before looking up at Raven. "Sure. What's up?"

Raven took a deep breath. "Look, the last time we fought against Carson...I tried to hit him with my powers but when I did...I had a vision."

Robin furrowed his brow. "A vision? Of what?"

"His past, I'm assuming. I think it's from the jumble of images from when I tried to read his mind. It's starting to unravel," Raven responded. She sat down on a table and sighed, putting her face in her hands. "I don't know why, but it's filling my mind. At night when I dream...I see his life. I can't remember anything from the dreams but--"

The alarm began to blair. "_Robin, you better get up here," _Cyborg's vace called from the speaker "_It's him. Carson's back."_.

* * *

RR76: Wow, convenient. Review! 


	7. VII

RR76: First chapter of summer. Yeay. By the way, with this chapter, people may think I'm stealing from the season's plot, which I am not doing. I had the plot for the whole five-story series in mind before I wrote Carson. This is how it was meant to be.

**Responses:**

**EMBER91: I like British slang. 'Specially bloody, bollacks, and pillock.**

**SaintH: You'll like this chapter then. Lots of fightage.**

**The Wild Ambition: Oh. That's Deadpool.**

**fourthelement: Nobody likes Terra anymore. I hope. She's a bitch you see.**

**Don't own, don't sue, yadda yadda yadda. Been through this...**

* * *

Carson paced the upper level of the bank nervously, gathering his thoughts. The bait was taken. The trap was set. Only Terra, no one else. Be kinda hard to only take Terra--the others wouldn't give her up without a fight. Especially Beast Boy, but getting past him wouldn't be difficult. Robin would be easily dispatched, Starfire and Cyborg as well. Getting past Raven, however... Carson shook his head. Time enough to worry when they arrived. 

The doors shattered and the six Titans entered. _Speak of the devil... _Carson thought, amused. He stepped up to the rail of the upper deck and looked down on the Titans. "Robin and companions...if I'd known you were coming I'd have baked a cake."

"You knew we were coming," Beast Boy said. "Where's the cake?"

Cason cracked his neck and drew his revolver. "Lost in translation I suppose."

"You're robbing banks now Carson? I'm disappointed," said Robin, looking up at the assassin with disgust.

Carson chuckled, shaking his head. The chuckle soon turned into a laugh--not a very nice one at that. "Robin...you don't get it do you? You never learn to recognize a trap when it's right in front of you."

The sound of guns cocking filled their ears. All around them men and women stepped out of hiding, each dressed like they'd been to the Hot Topic in Hell. Each carried a gun or crossbow. The leader, a tall muscular man with a goatee, stepped up next to Carson. "Take only the geomancer," Carson said to him. The leader nodded and leaped down, drawing a sword. "For the Beast!" he shouted.

The other cultists repeated the warcry and fired their weapons at Terra. A forcefield came around her from Raven, shielding her from immenent doom. "Titans, GO!" Robin shouted, and the battle began. Robin ran forward and leaped onto the upper level to challenge Carson.

"You're a glutton for punishment, aren't you Carson?" Robin snarled, drawing two birdarangs and creating that big-ass sword the way he does in Spellbound.

"If you define punishment as kicking your ass, throwing two of your friends off of a ten story building, shooting your girlfriend and brutally beating your might-as-well-be-sister, then yeah," Carson replied, drawing his katana and assuming a fight stance. The two fighters stared each other down, daring the other to move, until Carson broke the tension, stepping forward and swinging, aiming to disembowel Robin (not really of course). Robin blocked the blow and deflected two others, and replied with an assault of his own, raining down blows onto Carson, who deflected each and every one of Robins' swings.

The two locked their swords. "You've lost it Carson," Robin taunted. "If you're really as good as you say you are, I should be in pieces right now." Carson narrowed his eyes and pushed Robin away, going on the offensive.

"You don't understand, do you?" Carson said as he attacked Robin. "I could kill you before you could bat an eyelash. There's a reason I don't."

"Because you aren't getting paid to?" Robin asked through gritted teeth.

Carson swung, aiming for Robins' head, but at the last second reversed the attack, knocked the sword out of Robins' hand and thrust forward, stabbing through the Boy Wonder's side. Robin looked at Carson in shock. "Something like that, yeah," Carson mocked, pulling the sword out of Robin.

Robin staggered backward and collapsed, making Carson shake his head in exasperation. "Oh don't be so melodramatic," he sighed. "It won't kill you. It'll hurt, sure, but not kill you. My client, for whatever reason, wants you alive." Carson squatted down next to Robin. "I'm not sure he's thinking this one through though. You're going to play a big part in his downfall." He stood and sheathed his weapon. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a contract to fulfill."

* * *

A rock slammed into the head of a cultist, knocking him unconsious. Terra ducked under a swing of an axe and shot a pillar of rock into his belly, sending him flying. She panted and turned to face another attacker, only to come face-to-face with Carson. "Surprise," he chortled, and punched her in the nose. Terra fell backward, but Carson caught her by the neck and drove his knee into her stomach. The girl gasped and fell, clutching her midsection, staring at Carson in terror. 

"See you in Hell, Terra," Carson said, raising his revolver. "Literally." A massive green fist crashed into Carson, sending him flying into a wall. Beast Boy stood over Terra as a gorilla, then returned to his human state long enough to exchange a few words with Carson, who emerged from the rubble almost unscathed. "Okay, that hurt," he said, wincing.

"It was supposed to kill you," Beast Boy snapped.

"Really now?" Carson asked, seemingly interested. "Lemme give you some tips in beating people to death then." He teleported in a haze of flames behind the shape-shifter, got him in a headlock and began to punch him in the face. Beast Boy morphed into an elephant to break the headlock and swung his trunk at Carson. Carson caught it and threw Beast Boy across the room into one of the bound tellars, crushing her. Beast Boy gasped when he realized what had happened, but looked down the row to see a disturbing sight: All the tellars had been shot just below the neck, where the spinal cord met the cerebral cortex. He fainted from shock.

Carson cracked his neck and turned back to Terra. "Now, where were--" A blast knocked his feet out from under him and he looked up to see Raven hovering over him, staring down with fury."Do you ever just say hello?" Carson asked her. Raven replied by sending a collection of rubble at Carson, sending him flying against the far wall.

"Azerathh Metrion ZINTHOS!" Raven shouted, and fired another blast at him, absorbing his screams of agony, his pain fueling her rage. When at last the screams stopped, Raven ended her assault and levetated back to the ground, letting out a sigh of relief.

Her relief didn't last. The rubble exploded and Carson stepped out, his eyes blazing with fury. Raven gasped and sent more rubble at him but Carson grabbed it and threw it aside. He grinned wickedly and charged Raven, hitting her with his lowered shouldar. He leaped into the air and came down, driving his foot into Raven's stomach knocking her through the floor into the basement. Raven struggled to her feet, leaning on a safe, her fear growing as Carson jumped down through the hole. "You know Raven, I always thought you were the cute one," Carson growled in a demonic voice. Raven gathered her strength for another blast but Carson closed the distance between the two in a flash, grabbed her hand and shoved her against the safe.

Carson drew his knife and eyed it fondly. "Did you know, Raven," he asked, "that back in the middle ages, the most brutal and painful tourtures and executions were reserved for witches?" Ravens' breathing grew heavy with fear. "But oh my--all I have is this bitty little knife." His eyes met Ravens' and she saw that the iris had turned black. She tried to push him away but he held firm.

"Oh, don't worry Raven," Carson said, and whispered in her ear, "I know how to make this last." He brought the knife up to Ravens' face, a centimeter from her nose. Carson grinned wickedly. "Let's get started then, shall we?" And just like that, his grin fell away. He dropped the knife and staggered backwards. Raven took the oppertunity to break free of his grip, but couldn't tear her eyes away from the sight before her. Carson howled in pain, clutching his head and falling to his knees. The howling stopped, and Carson spoke. "I apoligize sir. It won't happen again, I swear." Raven was puzzled, trying to figure out who Carson was talking to--until she felt the evil presence herself. And in that instant, it dawned on Raven. What Carson was. Whom he was serving.

"Trigon," she whispered.

Carson stepped forward and backhanded her so hard, Raven fell unconcious. "Keep it to yourself girl. Trust me, you don't want to tell anyone," he told her softly.

The mark of Scath appeared on the wall and Trigon's voice spoke. "Your tactics are unsound, the girl yet lives."

"I underestimated her resolve and that of her friends," Carson said to the demon. "I don't understand, if I could only kill one of the Titans--"

"They may yet be of use to me," Trigon told him. "As long as Terra lives, my plans for the Earth's destruction are in jeapordy. And as of now, Terra yet lives. Fix this." The mark disappeared, and the demonic presence left the room.

"As you wish..." Carson muttered. He looked at Raven. "Sleep tight, princess," he sneered. "You just got lucky." He leaped through the hole to see the cultists locked in a losing battle with the other five Titans. "Fall back!" he shouted. The cultists obeyed and ran out of the ruined door. Carson lingered behind to say some parting words to the Titans. "This still isn't over Titans. I'll be back!" And with that, he teleported to...somewhere else, probably.

Starfire brought Robin down from the upper level. He was clutching his side, blood seeping through his fingers. "Let him go," he moaned. "There's nothing we can do now." He looked around. "Where's Raven?"

* * *

Weeks later...

* * *

July 31, 200412:30 pm

Carson stood on a cliff not far away from Titans Tower, a sniper rifle in his hands. He fingered the trigger as he waited for his quarry. He didn't wait long--Terra emerged from her window on a rock. _There you are_ thought Carson with a smile. He centered the crosshairs on her head and began to pull the trigger.

Suddenly someone else boarded the rock with her. Carson froze. Beast Boy stood with her, hand in hand. He cursed, but suddenly got an interesting idea. He'd tail them, see where they went, make sure they had a lovely time, and THEN shoot Terra at the right moment. Trigon never said anything about hurting the Titans, now did he?

Carson smiled. This would be interesting.

RR76: There. Review now please.


	8. VIII

RR76: I'm gonna say this now, because alot of people obviously haven't gotten the hint.

**HEY! YOU! YEAH YOU! YOU SEE THAT LITTLE OPTION MENU THING DOWN THERE? AFTER YOU'RE DONE READING THE CHAPTER, SELECT SUBMIT REVIEW, CLICK GO, AND TELL ME WHAT YOU FRICKIN' THINK OF THE STORY! COME ON, IS IT REALLY THAT HARD? JUST A LITTLE BUTTON! WOULDN'T TAKE TWO MINUTES! SO GO! DO IT! NOW!**

Thank you for listening. Now obey me.

**Responses:**

**Rory: Parents...**

**EMBER91: Just wait. Wait. Wait for it...wait for it. Now breathe!**

**im in a kill people mood: Trigon isn't Satan. Satan isn't Trigon. Satan's a small man. So's Trigon. Pudding is awesome.**

**The Wild Ambition: So, that wasn't directed at me now...was it?**

******Don't. Frickin'. Own. Nuttun'. 'Cept. Carson.**

**

* * *

**A despondent Beast Boy exited the house of mirrors. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't process what had just happened.

_Terra played us. Terra's a traitor._

_Terra never liked me._

He couldn't accept it. So someone else decided to make him accept it. "Do you believe me now, Beast Boy?" a voice asked. "Or do you still think that Terra's your friend?" Out of the shadows stepped Carson. Beast Boy threw a punch at him, but Carson caught the fist in his palm, elbowed Beast Boy in the stomach and threw him into a wall. "I'm not here to fight you, Beast Boy."

Beast Boy staggered back to his feet. "Right," he said bitterly. "Came to gloat?"

"I came to kill Terra. Decided I'd rather let you learn a lesson about trust," Carson said, leaning against a fence with his arms folded across his chest. "Why so glum?"

Beast Boy leaned back and sighed, looking at the stars. "You wouldn't understand. You don't know what it's like to have your heart ripped out."

"'Course I do," Carson said softly. Beast Boy looked at him. "I just don't care is all."

The changeling looked down. At least someone was listening, even if it was Carson. "She's working for Slade. That makes her my enemy. I know what I have to do, but I can't bring myself to do it. She's...Terra. I care about her alot, you know?"

"You can't force yourself to hate someone you love," Carson said. His expression of satisfaction faded slightly. "No matter how hard you try," he added quietly. He looked back at Beast Boy and spoke up again. "One way or another, you know what you must do."

"And what if I can't?" Beast Boy replied. "What if I can't do it?"

"Then I'll kill her."

Beast Boy's head snapped up to look at Carson. "No! I won't let you!"

"You said yourself that something had to be done. What does it matter if I kill her before you?"

"I didn't say she had to die!"

"She's a liar and a traitor. She should die."

In a flash Beast Boy was in gorilla form and had swung one of his massive fists at Carson. He dodged, drew his sword and slashed Beast Boy across the chest. He sheathed the blade, grabbed his fist and swung him through the wall back into the house of mirrors, where he lay in his normal form covered in cuts from the broken glass. "Take a message for your friends kiddo," Carson called after him. "Should they get in my way...I don't care what my employer's directions were. I will show no mercy." A bright light filled the room, reflecting off of the shattered mirrors, and Carson was gone.

* * *

2 weeks later...

* * *

It was over. The Teen Titans were finished. Slade's army was unapposed in it's conquest of the city. They marched through the streets, killing all in their path, led by one of the heroes the townspeople had come to love: Terra. The Teen Titan. Women screamed. Children begged for mercy. Grown men wept in the streets just before getting crushed by a bouldar. The police ran. The National Guard abandoned them. Jump City was, to put it mildly, screwed. 

And in the abandoned streets, defying Slade's army and Terra's power, was one lone warrior. Carson stood at the center of a crosswalk, holding a shotgun and staring up at Terra. The aforementioned girl lowered her perch to come face-to-face with the assassin. "Well, well, if it isn't Mr. 'I Kill For Fun.'"

"You wouldn't know anything about that now, would you Terra?" Carson asked, gripping his shotgun tighter.

Terra smirked. "Whatever." She rose into the air and shouted down at him for any remaining people to hear. "Carson Elam, you have chosen to oppose Slade, the Supreme Ruler of Jump City. Your only allies have fallen; you stand alone. What say you?"

"I never got the chance to thank you, Terra," he shouted up to her. "For saving my life. You gave me a second chance that day...Thank you, Terra."

Terra's expression softened a bit. She lowered herself to the ground and stepped off of the bouldar she was riding, sending it flying into an abandoned building. "You're welcome," she replied.

Carson laughed softly and looked up at the sky. "Wow. I thought it'd be harder than that. Wasn't so bad..." He looked back at Terra. "Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that," he cocked his shotgun and aimed it at Terra, "beore I kill you."

Terra's face turned to anger and as Carson fired, she raised a pillar of rock below her, sending her into the air. Carson continued to fire the shotgun, before abandoning it and teleporting up to meet her on the pillar. He drew his sword and Terra knocked it out of his hand. "Looks like I'll have to do this the old fashioned way," he said, cracking his neck. He attacked, pouring every once of his knowladge of three different martial arts into his flurry of moves, gaining speed and momentum as the fight wore on. Terra seemed to anticipate his every move, blocking the blows and responding with attacks of her own. Both improvised, both used every trick they knew, but they were still too evenly matched.

The pillar began to expand, forming a massive rock arena in the sky. The two continued to fight, neither fighter yielding an inch. Finally, Carson gave a kick across Terra's face, knocking her back, and drew his revolver. "Say goodnight, Terra," he growled, and fired. The bullet struck Terra in the chest...and ricoched off of the metal S on her suit.

Carson stared. "Didn't see that coming."

"How about this?" Terra said. The arena began to shake. A crack appeared down the center between Terra and Carson and the battlefield split in two. The half Carson was on began to dip forward and fall to the ground. Carson slid down the increasingly steep chunk of earth, lodging his knife into the rock to halt his fall. Terra smirked and put the finishing touch on the deathblow. Several cracks formed across the rock, and it exploded into dust and smaller chunks of earth. Terra stared into the haze, trying to find some trace of the mercenary, seemingly unaware of the plume of flame forming behind her. Carson stepped out of the fire, drew his knife and brought it down at Terra's back. She spun around, grabbed his arm and pushed it backwards, impaling him on his own weapon. He stared at Terra in shock, and the geomancer swung, hitting Carson in the cheek. She continued to attack, hitting him in various places on the body, until he reached the edge of the platform. At that moment, Terra kicked him in the chest and he fell. From a hundred stories up, he fell to the Earth, and Terra sent the remaining hunks of the platform he had been standing on down with him, crushing him.

Terra desended, and hovered over the pile of rocks that covered the warrior. "Say goodnight, Carson," she mocked. She looked down to see his sword lying at her feet, and she kicked it in with him. Terra gave the signal, and the army continued it's march, killing anything and everything that got in their way.

And when they were finally gone, the rocks began to stir. From beneath the pile of earth, a bloodied hand shot up, followed by a head. Carson coughed, choked, and hacked up blood. His vision blurred and darkened.

His final thought before the darkness took him was _She's so cute when she's a psychopath._

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RR76: If you forgot what to do now, read the thing I said at the beginning of the chapter. I do accept anonymous reviews! 


	9. Epilogue: Dark Covenant

RR76: Okay, I'm typing this on my uncle's computor,. See, I have to watch his house till Tuesday. It's actually quite peaceful, you see. But his keyboard sucks, his monitor is to friggin BIG and his gates are EVIL!

Ahem. Anyway...

This is an epilouge. The end of the story. The telling of what happens after the battle with Terra. But it is NOT, I repeat NOT the end forever. As I've mentioned before, this is a five part series. The next part deals with...something else. Possibly bacon. Part four deals with darkness. Part five...well, we're getting ahead of ourselves, aren't we? Might as well finish up part 2 before that.

Moving on...

**Responses:**

**Rory: He's alive, he's alive...barely.**

**im in a kill people mood: It was sarcasm. He does that. Now, if I decide to get really evil, then it might not be sarcasm. Muahahahahahahahahahahaha... I kid. Carson deserves better than that.**

**SaintH: Glad you survived. Terra will get what's coming to her, don't worry...**

**The Wild Ambition. Kay then. So, in other news...**

**Oh yeah, almost forgot:  
**

**HEY! YOU! YEAH YOU! YOU SEE THAT LITTLE OPTION MENU THING DOWN THERE? AFTER YOU'RE DONE READING THE CHAPTER, SELECT SUBMIT REVIEW, CLICK GO, AND TELL ME WHAT YOU FRICKIN' THINK OF THE STORY! COME ON, IS IT REALLY THAT HARD? JUST A LITTLE BUTTON! WOULDN'T TAKE TWO MINUTES! SO GO! DO IT! NOW!**

I will do that at the beginning of every chapter from now on. Don't own and so forth...

* * *

Carson reclined in his chair and sighed, going through the classifieds in the newspaper for about the billionth time that day. Ever since his defeat at the backstabbing hands of Terra, his services weren't in high demand anymore. It was like this only once before--after the Titans defeated him and Slade fired him in his own special way. Everybody had assumed then that Carson had been killed on the job (a/n: News travels fast in the underworld). This time, however... 

He had lost. Not only had he lost, but he had gotten a nice sized ass whooping to go with it. Most humiliating of all, it had been his adversaries the Teen Titans who found him and saved his life. Terra he could handle, but Robin and the Robinettes? Robin and the Pussycats? Two birds, a robot, a...thing and a ditz from outer space? He covered his face with his hands. Simply mortifying...

He stood up and winced as a sharp pain registered in his belly. He touched the not-quite-healed wound gingerly, a painful reminder of his bitter defeat. He walked into his trophy room (originally a walk in closet, but Carson put it to a better use) and flicked on a lightswitch, drinking in the atmosphere. He walked by the many trophies, smiling fondly at the memories. The smile fell away as he came to the one empty spot: a large shelf with a plaque reading "The Teen Titans" in bold lettering. Five empty shelves... Robin...Starfire...Cyborg...Raven...Beast Boy... Below the shelves was one large one reading TERRA. Carson stared at it long and hard, sighing. He was washed up. A has-been. No reason to stick around on the mortal plane...

He felt the familiar demonic presence of his former employer and sighed once more. "Go away Red. The deal's off, remember?"

"On the contrary," Trigon's voice boomed. "I want you to return to the city. I believe you will find it much...easier to dispose of the girl." The presence began to fade, and Trigon added one last cryptic message: "Bring the sledgehammer."

* * *

The face of Terra stared blankly into the cavern. So peaceful. So quiet. So...dear Lord, her arms are thin. You'd think that serving a powerful crime lord would at least build up _some_ muscle mass. Carson amused himself by thinking that he could snap her arms in two between his index and middle fingers, like a twig. The smile fell away as he remembered what he had come here to do. 

He stared up at Terra's face, an unreadible expression on her face. It was acceptence, it was sacrifice, it was...constipation? All rolled into one. And soon it would be unrecognizable. Carson raised the sledgehammer and let it rest on his shouldar as he thought about what he was about to do, the scene from the amusement park playing through his mind. The sniper rifle, the crosshairs locked on Terra's head, Terra frozen in awe of the fight unfolding before her. Just one squeeze of a trigger, just one shot, and it would be over. What he desired would be his. He'd be free of that Beast that lay dormant within him, waiting for the right opportunity to burst out and do heavan knows what to the world. And yet, for whatever reason, he hesitated.

And we all know the results of that action. So much death. So much bloodshed. Carson didn't typically mind bloodshed, as long as he was causing it. And as long as the people he was causing it to deserved it...

He shook his head, trying to clear his mind. One swing, one kill, and it would be over at last. Just grind her head to dust...seemed rather boring when he thought about it.

And for that reason, he dropped the hammer, raised his hands, and uttered an age-old incantation in a tounge that no man, woman or child knew, one that time had forgotten. "Esperdose hel'morth destathi ithrenil. From the jaws of Hell, I release you."

The rock surrounding Terra's flesh began to glimmer, and all of a sudden, melted away like chocolate that had been in the sun too long. Terra's limp body fell forward and landed with a thud. Carson knelt next to her body felt for a pulse and smiled with satisfaction. She was alive.He pulled a small device from his belt and placed it on the back of her neck. Four small metal claws emerged from the sides of the device and dug themselves into Terra's skin, making her moan in her sleep a bit. Carson stood and turned to leave when he saw the plaque. _TERRA: A Teen Titan. A true friend. _He reached down and pried it free from the rock and pulled out a note, placing it in the gap where the plaque once was. He tucked the piece of metal under his arm and walked out of the cavern.

Trigon's voice roared inside his mind. _"What in the name of the Beast do you think you are doing? Return at once and pummel her!"_

Carson merely smirked. He gave one last look to the sleeping girl and told the demon overlord "Wait and see..." And with that, he turned and left, not looking back.

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RR76: I hope everybody is looking forward to the sequel. I won't reveal what happens to Terra, you'll have to see... bwahaha. Now please review. Tell me what you think of the story? Good? Bad? Should I go ahead and write the rest of the series? I'm going to whether you like it or not, so HA! But seriously. Review please. 

For the record, Esperdose hel'morth destathi ithrenil means nothing, I made it up in the spot. Does it sound demonic?


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